by Rich Kienzle
Epic: A good many classic albums with Billy Sherrill remain available in physical and digital form. Solo: George Jones, Nothing Ever Hurt Me, A Picture Of Me (Without You), I Am What I Am, Bartender’s Blues, The Grand Tour, Still the Same Ole Me, Alone Again, Shine On, Wine Colored Roses, One Woman Man, and Friends in High Places. With Tammy: We Go Together, Let’s Build a World Together, We’re Gonna Hold On, We Love to Sing About Jesus, Golden Ring, and Together Again. Other duets: My Very Special Guests, with Elvis Costello, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, James Taylor, and others. An expanded 2005 CD version by Legacy Recordings adds twenty-nine duets. A Taste of Yesterday’s Wine with Merle Haggard and Double Trouble with Johnny Paycheck can be found on CD. Yesterday’s Wine is also available digitally.
Anthologies: The Essential George Jones: The Spirit of Country (Legacy Recordings) surveys high points from Starday, Mercury, United Artists, Musicor, and Epic on two CDs starting with the original 1954 No Money in This Deal. Legacy’s later two-disc compilation, The Essential George Jones, focuses on solo material, omitting Musicor material but adding recordings not on the Spirit of Country collection.
MCA: Much of his material here, some of it of uneven quality, can still be found: And Along Came Jones, Walls Can Fall, High-Tech Redneck, I Lived to Tell It All, It Don’t Get Any Better Than This all remain available. So do The Bradley Barn Sessions and One, his 1995 reunion with Tammy. The George Jones Collection is a sampler from this era.
Asylum: Cold Hard Truth released after his 1999 car crash. It features “Choices.”
Bandit: Several releases on George’s label remain available, among them Hits I Missed (And One I Didn’t) and Burn Your Playhouse Down: The Unreleased Duets. Kickin’ Out the Footlights . . . Again (with Merle Haggard) can be found on CD. The two-disc Gospel Collection produced by Billy Sherrill is out of print, but Amazing Grace, a single-disc sampler, is available.
SOURCES
AUTHOR INTERVIEWS
Russ Barnard: July 2014
Dan Beck: June 18, 2014
Bobby Black: July 13, 2013
Tony Brown: May 29, 2015
Slim Bryant: October 2003
Johnny Bush: April 24, 2015
Bonnie Garner: April 23, 2015
Gregg Geller: March 17, 2014
Lloyd Green: July 2007
George Jones: October 2001
R.C. Martin: March 21, 2014
Mike Martinovich: August 14, 2014
Mary Ann McCready: April 14, 2015
Frankie Miller: October 1, 2013
Melba Montgomery: 1995
Bob Moore: September 2008
Gerald Murray: April 4, 2015
Luther Nallie: October 30, 2013
Buck Owens: Fall 1988
Pig Robbins: July 8, 2014
Bob Sullivan: September 26, 2013
Mychael John Thomas: September 8, 2014
Norro Wilson: June 5, 2015
Interviews by Andrew Brown
Arlie Duff: June 9, 1996
Patsy Elshire: July 1, 2000
Freddie Frank: July 10, 1999
George Ogg: April 6, 2000
BOOKS
Albert, George, and Frank Hoffmann. The Cash Box Country Singles Charts: 1958–1982 (Scarecrow Press, 1984).
Allen, Bob. George Jones: The Saga of an American Singer (Doubleday Dolphin, 1984).
Bonney, Lorraine G. The Big Thicket Guidebook: Exploring the Backroads and History of Southeast Texas (Big Thicket Association & University of North Texas Press, 2011).
Brown, Maxine. Looking Back to See: A Country Music Memoir (University of Arkansas Press, 2009).
Carlisle, Dolly. Ragged but Right: The Life and Times of George Jones (Contemporary, 1984).
Cash, Johnny, with Patrick Carr. Cash: The Autobiography (HarperCollins, 1997).
Dawidoff, Nicholas. In the Country of Country (Pantheon, 1997).
Diekman, Diane. Live Fast, Love Hard: The Faron Young Story (University of Illinois Press, 2007).
Gibson, Nathan D., with Don Pierce. The Starday Story: The House That Country Music Built (University Press of Mississippi, 2011).
Hoffmann, Frank, and George Albert. The Cash Box Country Album Charts: 1964-1988 (Scarecrow Press, 1989).
Isenhour, Jack. He Stopped Loving Her Today: George Jones, Billy Sherrill, and the Pretty-Much-Totally True Story of the Making of the Greatest Country Record of All Time (University Press of Mississippi, 2011).
Jackson, Stonewall, with Billy Henson. From the Bottom Up: The Stonewall Jackson Story as Told in His Own Words (L.C. Parsons, 1991).
Jennings, Waylon, with Lenny Kaye. Waylon: An Autobiography (Warner Books, 1996).
Jones, George, with Tom Carter. I Lived to Tell It All (Villard, 1996).
Jones, Georgette, with Patsi Bale Cox. The Three of Us: Growing Up with Tammy and George (Atria, 2011).
Jones, Margaret. Patsy: The Life and Times of Patsy Cline (HarperCollins, 1994).
Kingsbury, Paul, Michael McCall, and John Rumble, eds. The Encyclopedia of Country Music: Compiled by the Staff of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum (Oxford University Press, 2012).
Kingsbury, Paul, and Alanna Nash, eds. Will the Circle Be Unbroken: Country Music in America (DK Publishing, 2006).
Mandrell, Barbara, with George Vecsey. Get to the Heart: My Story (Bantam, 1990).
McDonough, Jimmy. Tammy Wynette: Tragic Country Queen (Penguin, 2010).
Montgomery, Charlene. The Legend of George Jones: His Life and Death (Heritage Builders Publishing, 2014).
Nash, Alanna. Behind Closed Doors: Talking with the Legends of Country Music (Knopf, 1988).
Patoski, Joe Nick. Willie Nelson: An Epic Life (Little, Brown, 2008).
Richards, Keith. Life (Little, Brown, 2010).
Russell, Tony. Country Music Records: A Discography: 1921–1942 (Oxford University Press, 2004).
Texas Medicine Volume 8 (1912).
Tosches, Nick. The Nick Tosches Reader (DaCapo, 2000).
Whitburn, Joel. Top Country Albums: 1964 to 1997 (Record Research, 1997).
. Top Country Songs: 1944 to 2005 (Record Research, 2005).
White, Howard. Every Highway Out of Nashville (JP Productions, 1990).
Wyman, Bill. Stone Alone (Penguin, 1990).
Wynette, Tammy, with Joan Dew. Stand By Your Man: An Autobiography (Simon & Schuster, 1979).
NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
Allen, Sherhonda. “George Jones Makes Pitch for Country Sausage.” Florence, AL, Times-Daily (July 23, 2003): 1B, 4B.
“Angry Fans Walk Out of George Jones Show.” Ocala Star-Banner (December 5, 1987): 2A.
Brewer, Steve, and Rebecca Shockley. “Bridge Idea Plays Possum.” Beaumont Enterprise (August 2, 1994): 1A, 3A.
Buck, Jerry. “Actress Plays Tammy Wynette in TV Film.” Spokane Daily Chronicle (March 27, 1981): 11.
Carr, Patrick. “George Jones Sings His Brains Out.” Village Voice (November 8, 1976): 65.
Catlin, Roger. “George Jones, Tammy Wynette Give Fans an Uneven Show.” Hartford Courant (July 7, 1995).
Cooper, Peter. “George Jones, Country Music Hall of Famer and Master of Sad Ballads, Dies at Age 81.” Nashville Tennessean (April 26, 2013).
. “George Jones Knew He Would Be a No-Show Tonight.” Nashville Tennessean (November 22, 2013).
. “George Jones: Remembering the Friend, Father, Husband.” Nashville Tennessean (May 1, 2013).
“Country Artists Protest.” Gadsden Times (November 26, 1974).
“Country Legend to Teach Music Business Fundamentals.” Associated Press (January 18, 2007).
“Country Music Couple to Record.” Sarasota Herald-Tribune (April 17, 1976): 10A.
“Country Music Singer Is Granted a Divorce.” Journal (March 13, 1975).
“Country Singer Jones Faces January 19 Cocaine Trial.” Ocala Star-Banner (December 12, 1982): C1.
Croft, Lynne. “Tammy Wynette–George Jones Relived in TV-Movie.” Lakeland Ledger (March 31, 1981): 6C.
. “They Don’t Joke about George Jones Anymore.” Lewiston Journal (June 19, 1982): 13.
. “Year Long Battle Pays Off for Country Music Singer.” Prescott Courier (October 10, 1980): 17.
“Fans Bolt Jones’ Concert.” Gainesville Sun (December 6, 1987): 2A.
“Farmers Receive Concert Tickets.” Rome News-Tribune (May 28, 1987): 12.
Fausset, Richard. “Mower Meets Moonshine at a Museum for Country Star George Jones.” New York Times (May 23, 2015).
“George Jones.” Kentucky New Era (September 18, 1978): 10.
“George Jones Arrested in Tennessee.” Gadsden Times (May 26, 1982): 2.
“George Jones Arrested on Drunk Driving Charge.” Florence, AL, Times-Daily (March 30, 1982): 5.
“George Jones Behind in Child Support.” Sarasota Herald-Tribune (September 22, 1978): 13A.
“George Jones Climbs One More Mountain.” Toledo Blade (December 9, 1984): G3.
“George Jones Cocaine Possession Trial Delayed until Next Month.” Ocala Star-Banner (January 19, 1983): 9A.
“George Jones Fan Backs Up His Admiration with $737 in Cash.” Ocala Star-Banner (July 9, 1982): 5A.
“George Jones Files Bankruptcy.” Daytona Beach Morning Journal (December 16, 1978): 2A.
“George Jones Files Libel Suit.” St. Petersburg Independent (July 25, 1984): 2A.
“George Jones Grabs the Cash and Leaves in the Middle of Concert.” Lakeland Ledger (May 7, 1983): 2.
“George Jones Hits the Road Again—Ahead of Schedule.” Lewiston Daily Sun (May 7, 1983): 23.
“George Jones Hospitalized.” Rome News Tribune (October 23, 1990): 12.
“George Jones Hospitalized.” Tuscaloosa News (August 1, 1987): 4.
“George Jones Out of Hospital.” Wilmington Morning Star (October 27, 1990): 2A.
“George Jones Pleads Guilty to Drug Charges.” Florence, AL, Times-Daily (February 11, 1983): 13.
“George Jones Released from Hospital.” Associated Press (March 19, 1999).
“George Jones’ Check to Cover Fine Bounces.” Ocala Star-Banner (June 11, 1982): 7A.
“George Jones’ Two Sons Sue Over Royalties.” Wilmington Morning Star (September 9, 1995): 2A.
Goodwin, Jim. “Young Vidor Singer Heads for Big Time.” Beaumont Enterprise (January 15, 1965).
“Grand Jury to Investigate George Jones Crash.” Reading Eagle (March 31, 1999): D10.
Gray, Ann. “Just Water Under the Bridge: George Jones Claims He’s Put Past behind Him.” Beaumont Enterprise (July 24, 1994).
“Halts Concert Tours.” Southeast Missourian (March 27, 1983): 2.
“Her Kidnapping Is a Mystery to Tammy Wynette.” Sarasota Herald-Tribune (October 6, 1978): 2A.
Hurst, Jack. “George Jones Puts New Loves into His Life.” Milwaukee Journal (October 27, 1983): 1–2.
. “Greatness, Grief and George Jones.” Chicago Tribune Magazine (March 22, 1981): 12–14, 16, 18, 20–22, 26, 28–30, 34.
“It’s More Than a Song Now.” Sarasota Herald-Tribune (January 9, 1975).
“Jackson Plea Bargain Concert a Big Hit for George Jones.” Lakeland Ledger (September 18, 1983): 2A.
“Jones Alcohol Addict.” Tuscaloosa News (October 12, 1978): 30.
“Jones Cancels Performance.” Newburgh Beacon-News (November 5, 1983): 2.
“Jones Divorce Suit Dropped.” Gainesville Sun (December 19, 1987): 2A.
“Jones Faces Arrest and Extradition.” Spartanburg Herald-Journal (June 13, 1982): C2.
“Jones Released.” Florence, AL, Times-Daily (August 20, 1988): 2A.
“Jones to Make an Appearance.” Southeast Missourian (April 23, 1982): 15.
“June 3 Grand Ole Opry Show, Added Attractions George Jones and Sonny Burns.” Tucson Daily Citizen advertisement (May 26, 1954): 17.
“Jones to Perform in Lieu of Jail Term.” Bangor Daily News (February 11, 1983): 2.
Levine, Jo Ann. “Country Music in the Big City.” Beaver County Times.
Keel, Beverly. “A Survivor’s Tale.” Nashville Scene (May 27, 1999).
Kienzle, Rich. “Stone Cold Sober at Last.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (November 27, 2001): D1.
King, Caitlyn R. “Country Star Lashes Out at Daughter.” Associated Press (April 25, 2012).
“No Business Like Show Business—Except Politics.” St. Petersburg Times (June 13, 1972): 6B.
“Ohio State Fair Cancels George Jones Concert.” Norwalk, CT, Hour (June 2, 1981): 10.
Palmer, Robert. “Nashville Sound: Country Music in Decline.” New York Times (September 17, 1985): 1.
Pareles, Jon. “His Life Was a Country Song.” New York Times (April 26, 2013).
Patterson, Jim. “George Jones: Alcohol Impaired Driving.” Lakeland Ledger (May 13, 1999): A4.
. “George Jones Flourishes with New Album.” Bangor Daily News (September 17, 2001): D1.
. “Jones Thrives at 70.” Bangor Daily News (September 17, 2001): D1.
. “Singer Critical after Car Crash.” Associated Press (March 7, 1999).
“Police: Vodka Found in Singer’s Wreckage.” Spartanburg Herald-Journal (March 13, 1999): A2.
Richter, Bob. “Drunk Singer Cycles Off with Girlfriend, Tequila.” San Antonio News (August 16, 1982).
Rose, Bob. “Country Music Star’s Drinking Spoils Show.” Toledo Blade (September 27, 1981): F4.
Safford, Peggy. “Jones Makes His Move.” Florence, AL, Times-Daily (October 1, 1981): 12.
Schwed, Mark. “George Jones: A Journey Back from the Brink.” Ottawa Citizen (June 23, 1984): 31–32.
“Sheriff Seizes George Jones’ Guitar.” Washington Morning Star (September 23, 1983): 6B.
Shockley, Rebecca. “Orange County Balks at Naming Bridge after Singer.” Beaumont Enterprise (July 22, 1994).
“Show Business.” Milwaukee Journal (November 30, 1981): 5.
“Show Promoter Sues George Jones.” Fredericksburg, VA, Free-Lance Star (December 17, 1981): 28.
“Singer Faces Lawsuit for $10.1 Million.” Montreal Gazette (June 3, 1981): 32.
“Singer Is Charged.” Henderson, NC, Times-News (December 18, 1976).
“Singer George Jones Ailing with Severely Infected Sinus.” Tuscaloosa News (August 19, 1988): 8.
“Singer George Jones in Rehabilitation.” Victoria Advocate (April 2, 1982): 5D.
“Singer George Jones Said He Doesn’t Remember Accident.” Associated Press (April 3, 1999).
“Singer Is Indicted on Cocaine Charge.” Toledo Blade (July 14, 1982): 12.
“Singer Hospitalized after Auto Wreck.” Tuscaloosa News (March 31, 1982): 8.
“Singer May Give Concert to Carry Out Court Order.” Gadsden Times (July 16, 1982): 5.
“Singer Out of Hospital after Double Pneumonia.” Tuscaloosa News (May 11, 1988): 9.
“Singer’s Assets Seized to Pay Debt.” Fredericksburg, VA, Free-Lance Star (October 28, 1982): 3.
“Singer’s Charges Dismissed.” Ocala Star-Banner (July 30, 1983): 2A.
“Singer’s Ex-Mate Charged.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (September 23, 1978): 7.
“Songwriter Ivory Joe Hunter Dies.” Milwaukee Journal (November 9, 1974).
Stuckrath, Dave. “George Jones Showed Up, Just Barely.” Lakeland Ledger (February 1, 1983): 2C.
“Texas Ruby Dies in Fire; George Jones Hurt in Auto Crash.” Billboard (April 13, 1963): 22.
“The Cajun Life Changes Jones.” Lexington Dispatch (October 23, 1982): 2.
“The Return of George Jones.” Lakeland Ledger (October 14, 1980): 4C.
Toal, Margaret. “Vidor to Add Walk of Fame. Possum Might Attend.” Beaumont Enterprise (February 4, 2010).
Turner, Milton. “He Plays His Guitar Enthusiastically, Breaking Strings, Gaining Stardom.” Beaumont Enterprise (June 3, 1956).
“$24 Million Lawsuit by ‘Ex’ Surprises Tammy Wynette
.” St. Petersburg Times (October 25, 1980): 3A.
Van Dusen, Ray. “Former Sheriff Recalls Run-In with Old Possum Jones.” Monroe County Journal (May 3, 2013).
Wallich, Dan. “Beaumont City Council Favors Renaming Span.” Beaumont Enterprise (July 13, 1994).
. “‘Jones Bridge’ Wins 2nd OK.” Beaumont Enterprise (July 19, 1994).
. “Just Call It ‘Possum Bridge’: Bureau Wants to Name I-10 Bridge After George Jones.” Beaumont Enterprise (July 9, 1994).
“Western Bandleader George Jones Hurt.” Daytona Beach Morning Journal (March 31, 1963): 4A.
“What’s in a Name? Jones Deserves Honor.” Letters, Beaumont Enterprise (July 21, 1994).
MAGAZINE ARTICLES
Carr, Patrick. “George & Tammy: The Never Ending Story,” “George Jones Survives the Country Wars,” “Tammy Wynette Turns Yet Another Corner.” Country Music (July/August 1995): 28–42.
Fay, Byron. “FayFare’s Opry Blog” (http://fayfare.blogspot.com).
Gabree, John. “Tammy Wynette: Songs of Heartbreak from a Happy Home.” Country Music (April 1973): 26–34.
“George Jones.” Country Music (July/August 1987): 42.
Hickey, Dave. “George Jones: Country’s Supreme Stylist.” Country Music (December 1975): 36.
Liddane, Jim. “ISA Gene Pitney Interview.” International Songwriters Association, Ireland (http://www.songwriter.co.uk/page71.html).
Nash, Alanna. “Cool Reunion: George Jones & Tammy Wynette.” Entertainment Weekly (June 30, 1995).